After India’s Balakot air strikes and the more recent Op Sindoor, aerial engagements remained a subject of intense debate, and continue to do so.
Aerial engagements hogged maximum news headlines since aviation began. Baron von Richthofen, or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of the war, being officially credited with 80 air combat victories.
Since the dawn of military aviation, aerial combat has captured the public’s imagination and dominated headlines. The most iconic figure from World War I remains Manfred von Richthofen, better known as the Red Baron, a German fighter pilot officially credited with 80 air combat victories, earning him the title of the war’s ace-of-aces.
In World War II, the skies saw even fiercer battles and higher scores. Germany’s Erich Hartmann became the all-time leading ace with 352 confirmed victories, all on the Eastern Front. Fellow Luftwaffe pilots Hans-Joachim Marseille (158 victories, mostly in North Africa) and Hans-Ulrich Rudel (renowned more for ground attacks, including over 500 tanks destroyed, but with nine aerial victories) also achieved legendary status.
On the Allied side, the Soviet Union’s Ivan Kozhedub emerged as the top scorer with 62–64 victories, while the United States’ Richard Bong claimed 40 victories in the Pacific.
Britain’s standout aces included Douglas Bader (22 victories, despite flying with prosthetic legs after a pre-war crash) and James “Johnnie” Johnson (34 individual victories plus shares, the highest-scoring Western Allied pilot against the Luftwaffe).
In World War II, the antagonists captured each other’s aircraft and introduced them into a modest dissimilar air-combat training (DACT) role.
The Germans created a unit known as “Touring Zirkus Rosarius” using captured P-51s, P-47s, etc., which visited fighter bases and even allowed senior pilots to fly the adversary aircraft themselves.
The British RAF created No. 1426 Flight with Luftwaffe-captured fighters (Bf 109s and Fw 190s) that had been fully tested and then taken to USAF and RAF bases for familiarization training.
The Korean and Vietnam wars highlighted the need for more realistic DACT.
It was not always possible to seize or get an adversary aircraft. It was thus decided to use own aircraft with similar performance to simulate enemy aircraft.
Dedicated “Aggressor Squadrons” were created. Seeing and practising engaging different types of aircraft, including simulated adversary ones, has become an important part of combat aircrew training.
What is an Aggressor Squadron?
The aggressor squadron, or adversary squadron, is trained to serve as an opposing force in military war games. Aggressor squadrons use enemy tactics, techniques, and procedures to provide a realistic simulation of air combat, rather than training against one’s own forces.
Since it is impractical to use actual enemy aircraft and equipment, surrogate aircraft are used to emulate potential adversaries.
The first formal use of dissimilar aircraft for training was in 1969 by the United States Navy (USN) Fighter Weapons School, better known as “Topgun”, which used the A-4 Skyhawk to simulate the performance of the MiG-17.
Some of this DACT was replicated at major fighter airbases. The United States Air Force (USAF) followed suit, and its first aggressor squadrons at Nellis AFB were equipped with the readily available T-38 Talon.
The USAF’s poor air combat results in Vietnam prompted more realistic training programs to improve fighter pilots’ air combat effectiveness. The DACT conducted by a professional aggressor force gave Tactical Air Command fighter pilots the hostile environment and realistic adversary that were lacking in a predominantly F-4 “Phantom” fighter force.
The Aggressor squadrons provide a free-for-all conflict team to educate fighter pilots on what to expect in actual combat. The role of these squadrons increased to replicate threats, test defences, and probe for vulnerabilities. These schools became crucial for training pilots to have confidence and the best chance of success in actual combat situations.
Aggressor Squadrons became the focal point of enemy tactics, weapon systems, and philosophy. Recommendations to improve air combat training and overall tactical force readiness were presented.
The evaluation of Aggressor Squadron operations encompassed both training and cost analyses. The training effectiveness is meant to project the outcome to a future conflict.
Types of Aircraft Used
The US aggressor squadrons initially flew Douglas A-4s (USN) and Northrop F-5s (USN, Marines, and USAF) along with T-38 Talons until new F-5E/F Tiger II aircraft were introduced. These were eventually supplemented by early-model F/A-18As (USN), specially built F-16Ns (for the USN), and F-16As (USAF).
At the end of 2005, the USAF began using the larger, faster F-15 Eagle as an aggressor aircraft alongside the F-16. However, the USAF began phasing out its F-15 aggressors towards the end of 2014, and the F-16C became the only dedicated aggressor type until 2022, when the F-35A Lightning II was inducted to better simulate stealth fighter threats.
Foreign aircraft have been used as aggressors in the United States; the Israeli Kfir fighter, designated F-21, was one.
Actual Soviet MiG-17s, MiG-21s, and MiG-23s have also been flown by the USAF as aggressors under the “Constant Peg” program.
Project Constant Peg was a secret program to train USAF, USN, and US Marine Corps fighter aircrews to fly against Soviet-designed aircraft. The USAF’s 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES), nicknamed the “Red Eagles,” flew MiG-17, MiG-21, and later MiG-23 aircraft.
The Red Eagles gave American aircrew the skills and confidence to defeat these threats in aerial combat. German MiG-29 aircraft were regular visitors to the United States before being sold to Poland, and participated in valuable DACT training. One MiG-29 was loaned to the US for evaluation, providing insight into the threat posed by the technology.
Aggressor aircraft in the United States are typically painted in colourful camouflage schemes, matching the colours of many Soviet aircraft and contrasting with the grey colours used in most operational US combat aircraft.
Camouflage schemes consist of many shades of blue (similar to those used on Russian Sukhoi fighters), green, or light brown (similar to those used by aircraft flown by many air forces in the Middle East).
The USAF also operated Aggressor squadrons in the UK and in the Philippines. A USAF Aggressor squadron operated F-16s and trained over the North Sea and in Germany, Spain, and Italy.
The PACAF counterpart, the 26th Training Aggressor Squadron, operated F-5s out of the former Clark Air Base near Angeles City, Philippines. The US Army operated eleven Soviet or Russian aircraft for adversary training, including Mi-24s, Mi-8s, Mi-2s, and An-2s.
Soviet Union & Russia
The Soviet Air Forces began a program known as the 1521st Center for Combat Employment, located in Mary, Turkmen SSR, in 1970. The program was prompted by the poor performance of Soviet-supplied aircraft in the Middle East and competition with the US.
Before that, the Air Force units used some of their own planes in “simulated enemy” roles. The Aviation Base consisted of 3 squadrons. Two squadrons took “aggressor” roles.
Initially, they operated the MiG-21bis and the MiG-23MLD. Later, both were equipped with MiG-29s, painted to resemble the F-15 Eagle. A third squadron operated drones for target practice for the visiting Soviet Air Force units.
Currently, the 116th Combat Application Training Center, part of the 185th Center for Combat Training and Application (near Astrakhan), acts as Russia’s main aggressor force.
They’ve upgraded to modern fighters like the Su-35S, providing frontline pilots with a high-end threat experience. They realistically mirror potential adversaries’ tactics, systems, and techniques, giving frontline pilots experience against sophisticated threats.
NATO
Reunified Germany inherited 24 MiG-29s from the East German Air Force. They formed the JG73 “Steinhoff” squadron that was partially used as an aggressor squadron. NATO air forces compared the Luftwaffe’s Fulcrums with Western types during NATO training exercises.
Many Western pilots were able to train in combat tactics against a real Russian fighter flown by highly experienced pilots and to execute air-to-air combat against “the real thing.”
In Italy, since 2015, the Typhoon squadrons have operated with the 212° Gruppo (Squadron), which was responsible for the Lead-In Fighter Training course and employed its Alenia Aermacchi T-346A Master advanced jet trainers for the Tactical Leadership Program in the Aggressors role.
In the near future, NATO’s integrated opposing force (IOPFOR) program will include privately owned lightweight fighters that could provide an aggressor training service for NATO.
Egypt has recently established an Aggressor squadron called “95 Aggressor Squadron,” operating F-16 Block 52s that were added recently.
The Israeli Air Force’s aggressor squadron is 115 Squadron, also known as the Flying Dragon or Red Squadron, and is based at Ovda Airbase. It is their sole squadron that operates fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and ground-based assets.
The unit also offers its services to other nations. Its primary mission is to simulate enemy forces, tactics, and air defences in as realistic a scenario as possible to train their combat squadrons and international allies, including those from the United States, Italy, and Poland, to enhance interoperability and share tactics.
They use authentic Arabic nicknames and mimic enemy operational methods to challenge “Blue” (friendly) forces during exercises.
Chinese PLAAF Aggressor Squadron (Brigade)
The People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) conducts DACT primarily through its single known aggressor unit, the 66th Aggressor Brigade (also known as the “Blue Brigade”) or 66th OPFOR (Opposing Force) Brigade.
This unit operates a mix of older-generation Chinese and Russian-origin fighter aircraft to simulate the forces of potential adversaries.
Their motto is “Think and fly like the enemy.”
Based at Cangxian Air Base in Hebei Province, it is subordinate to the Air Force Flight Test and Training Base (FTTB).
The brigade uses several types of fourth-generation fighter jets to replicate various threats, including Sukhoi Su-30MKK, Chengdu J-10A, and Shenyang J-11B.
These aircraft simulate adversarial air forces from countries like the United States, Taiwan, and India, among others. More modern Chinese fighters, such as the J-16 and J-20, are expected to be introduced into the aggressor fleet as production increases and frontline units are fully equipped.
The PLAAF’s DACT training has evolved significantly, shifting towards more realistic, high-intensity combat training exercises to narrow the gap between training and real combat.
The PLAAF has reformed its pilot curriculum to be more operationally efficient, including dedicated training bases and advanced jet trainers to provide more realistic scenarios from an earlier stage of a pilot’s career.
DACT is now a core component of large-scale exercises. The “Red Sword/Blue Sword” series of exercises often involves over 100 aircraft of different types in complex scenarios simulating electronic warfare and beyond-visual-range (BVR) engagements.
The 66th Brigade participated in its first international training exercise, “Shaheen-6,” with the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) in 2017, indicating the importance placed on high-level, complex training scenarios.
In a notable development, China has been recruiting former Western military pilots, particularly from the UK, to train PLAAF personnel in Western tactics and procedures, further enhancing the realism of DACT.
PAF (Pakistan) Aggressor Squadron
Established in January 2019, the PAF Aggressor Squadron is the No.29 Squadron, nicknamed “Aggressors,” operating from PAF Base Mushaf (Sargodha) and is a part of the Combat Commander’s School (CCS) under the Airpower Centre of Excellence (ACE).
They use F-16 AM/BM Block-15 MLU (Vipers) to simulate enemy tactics for realistic training, keeping other PAF units sharp for real combat scenarios, as they faced in Operation Swift Retort post-Balakot.
Their motto is “The heat of which melts the stars.”
Aggressor emulation, replicating potential adversary tactics, against aircraft like the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Su-30MKI/MiG-29, to train PAF’s frontline fighter pilots. The unit provides frontline pilots with experience against sophisticated enemy techniques, enhancing overall combat readiness and exposing vulnerabilities in current strategies.
Aggressor Squadrons – Other Countries
The Japanese Tactical Fighter Training Group was established in 1981. It used Mitsubishi T-2 aircraft as aggressors. Since 1990, it has used Mitsubishi F-15J/DJ aircraft. It is based at Komatsu Air Base in Ishikawa Prefecture.
The 46th Imaginary Enemy Squadron of the Republic of China Air Force (Taiwan) was established in 1972 under the guidance of the US Military Assistance Advisory Group.
It used the F-86 Sabre from 1972 to 1977, the F-5A/B Freedom Fighter from 1977 to 1981, and now uses the F-5E/F Tiger II as aggressors. The squadron is located at the Zhi-Hang Air Base in Taitung.
Established in 1966 and restructured in 1992, the 132nd Squadron of the Turkish Air Force, as defined by the unique “weapons and tactics” concept, which is a combination of regular fighter, test flight, and tactics development duties, is the sole aggressor squadron of Turkey. The squadron is based at the Konya Air Base and has operated F-16 Fighting Falcons since 2007.
Outsourced Aggressor Squadrons
Some aggressor missions do not require dogfighting, but instead involve flying relatively simple profiles to test the target acquisition and tracking capabilities of radars, missiles, and aircraft.
Some of these missions were initially outsourced to private companies under short-term or one-time contracts. These programs began to evolve steadily, incorporating longer contracts and more advanced mission capabilities.
Civilian contractors such as ATAC (Airborne Tactical Advantage Company), Top Aces, and Draken International are now flying advanced radar-equipped aircraft in complex training missions, including international large-force exercises such as Red Flag, Maple Flag, Frisian Flag, and Tiger Meet.
They use disarmed ex-military jets or small-business jets such as the Lear 35, L-39, Alpha Jet, Hawker Hunter, Saab J35 Draken, BD-5J, IAI Kfir, A-4 Skyhawk, MiG-21, Mirage F1, and even the F-16 to simulate potential enemy aircraft and tactics.
By outsourcing these missions, customer governments can save costs, save valuable airframe life on combat fleets, and benefit from the flexibility of civilian operations. They also benefit from continuing to draw on the expertise of the contracted pilots, most of whom are highly experienced weapons school graduates, either retired or still serving officers concurrently flying in the Reserve, Air National Guard, or equivalent.
The Canadian Forces Air Command and the UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) initially maintained units to undertake the aggressor role. The role has now been outsourced.
RAF announced that a six-year contract to provide these services, now known as the Interim Red Air Aggressor Training Service (IRAATS), was awarded to Draken Europe using a fleet of Aero L-159 ALCA Honey Badgers and Dassault Falcon 20s.
India’s Aggressor Aircraft Squadron
IAF doesn’t have a single, dedicated “Aggressor Squadron” like the USAF but uses specialized units and exercises, with 9 Squadron (The Wolfpack) flying Su-30MKI and Mirage 2000s in Gwalior acting as a key aggressor-style unit, replicating potential adversary tactics (Pakistan & China) for advanced training, alongside units like Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE).
All IAF units practise DACT as part of the squadron and individual annual training. TACDE develops tactics and trains pilots in realistic combat scenarios.
Directorate of Air Staff Inspection (DASI) is an official inspecting body of the IAF. DASI inspectors assess the tactical and operational capabilities of IAF aircraft to determine whether they can meet wartime requirements. DASI also inspects and rates the performance of individual pilots and squadrons.
IAF’s Composite Battle Response and Analysis Group (CoBRA-G) has given IAF an edge in doctrine development, force employment, and strategy over rivals (PAF & PLAAF).
It integrates fighter squadrons, drones, AEW&C, EW Assets, Flight Refueller Aircraft (FRA), and ground-based AD and other assets. There is a collocated Electronic Warfare range. The group has analysed the air ops in Op Sindoor and has also had a close look at the Chinese PL-15E missiles that landed in India in a fairly intact state.
PAF has established the Airpower Center of Excellence (ACE) to counter CoBRA-G.
To Summarise
Aggressor Squadrons provide realistic training by mimicking potential enemy aircraft, tactics, and systems. They keep frontline squadrons sharp and prepared for actual combat scenarios.
They study, evolve, and test new tactics and develop counter-tactics for potential threats.
Handpicked pilots and advanced aircraft are used for the purpose. The IAF also leverages multinational exercises such as Red Flag to gain exposure to adversary tactics.
IAF also exercises regularly with the world’s major air forces in India or abroad. Large-scale exercises, with large force engagements (LFE), such as “Tarang Shakti,” are conducted to expose not only the aircrew but also the entire airborne and ground-based combat assets.
While the US and China have much larger “Aggressor” squadron complements, India’s can be called a “lean but mean” setup. For the IAF, the world’s fourth-largest air force, the priority remains to rebuild its fighter squadron numbers to the authorised 42.5. Also, IAF needs to get many more AEW&C and FRA.
Lessons from the conflict in Ukraine and Op Sindoor have shown changes in the air combat environment and engagements.
Very Long Range BVR (VLR-BVR) engagements in an intense electronic environment, using secure encrypted communications; enhanced use of loitering munitions and cruise missiles; drones and drone swarms are the immediate future.
The importance of near-real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) has been further emphasized. Building tactics to use these and to identify their counters is already being studied at these “Aggressor” squadrons.
- Air Marshal Anil Chopra (Retired) is an Indian Air Force veteran, fighter test pilot, and ex-director-general of the Center for Air Power Studies. He has been decorated with gallantry and distinguished service medals during his 40-year tenure in the IAF.
- This is an Opinion Article. Views Personal of the Author
- He tweets @Chopsyturvey
- Follow EurAsian Times on Google News
